2/16/2008 - Bruins Fall at Home Three Times to "Whits" to Open 2008 Tennis Season
Whitworth Box Score 2/15 / Whitworth Box Score 2/16 / Whitman Box Score 2/15
NEWBERG, Ore. - Perhaps a bit rusty due to limited practice time because of wet weather and no access to indoor facilities, the George Fox University Bruins dropped all three of their season-opening men's tennis matches by 9-0 scores, twice to Whitworth University and once to 15th-ranked Whitman College, over the weekend here at the GFU campus courts. The Bruins fell to Whitworth in the season opener Friday and again to the Pirates on Saturday morning. Friday's singles saw Nick Jenness fall to Brian Elliott 6-4, 6-0 at #1, Ralf Schulz to Josh Steele 6-1, 6-1 at #2, Mac Ovenell to Ed Anegon 6-4, 6-2 at #3, Billy Johnson to Joe Wales 6-2, 6-3 at #4, Shawn McKenzie to Scott Donnell 6-0, 6-0 at #5,and Jordon Vargas to Colin Zalewski 6-4, 6-2 at #6.
In doubles, Jenness and Schulz were ousted by Steele and Wales 8-4 at #1, John and Vargas fell to Donnell and Elliott 8-1 at #2, and Ovenell and McKenzie dropped a narrow 9-7 decision to Anegon and Zalewski at #3.
The next day, the two newest members of the Bruin team made their college debuts against Whitworth. Scott Porter fell 6-1, 6-0 to the Pirates' Austin Abelar at #5 singles, Ryan Wilson fell 6-0, 6-1 to Phil Aldridge at #6, and then Porter and Wilson were blanked 8-0 by Abelar and Aldridge at #3 doubles.
In other singles, Schulz fell 6-0, 6-0 to Elliott at #1, Ovenell fell to Steele 6-2, 6-3 at #2, Vargas fell to Donnell 6-3, 6-4 at #3, and McKenzie fell to Zalewski 6-1, 6-0 at #4. In doubles, Schulz and Vargas were defeated 8-3 by Elliott and Steele at #1, and McKenzie and Ovenell fell by an 8-3 score to Donnell and Zalewski at #2.
In the afternoon, the Missionaries showed why they are nationally ranked in losing only 11 games during the match. In singles, it was Matt Solomon over the Bruins' Schulz 6-3, 6-1 at #1, Dan Solomon over Jenness 6-0, 6-0 at #2, Chris Bailey over Ovenell 6-0, 6-0 at #3, Dan Wilson over Vargas 6-1, 6-0 at #4, Quin Miller over McKenzie 6-3,6-1 at #5, and Jon Tat over Porter 6-0, 6-0 at #6.
Doubles went to the Solomons over Jenness and Schulz 8-0 at #1, Bailey and Robert Rye over Ovenell and McKenzie 8-1 at #2, and Miller and Wilson over Vargas and Porter 8-1 at #3.
George Fox is now 0-3 overall and in the Northwest Conference, while Whitworth is 4-2 overall and 4-0 in the conference, and Whitman is 4-5 overall and 4-0 in the NWC.
The Bruins host Pacific Lutheran University Friday at 2:30 p.m. With the George Fox women also scheduled against PLU at home at the same time, the two teams will be making use of either the city-owned Jaquith Park courts or Newberg High School as well as their own campus courts.